Aquaponic Fruit Trees

With Robbie Vinson

Overview

● Flood and Drain design

● Grow medium

● Tree choice

● Nutrients

● Hardware

Grow Bed

Minimum size for even dwarf

varieties is 12” deep &

10 - 15 gallons capacity

55 gallons is the easiest

available and adequate for

years of rootball growth.

Clay vs Gravel

Clay can prove to be too lightweight and

unsupportive for larger trees. Although it

does hold moisture longer between water

cycles.

Gravel provides substantial weight for tree

stability. This becomes more important the

shallower the grow bed area.

Tree Selection

Choosing fruit trees mostly should be based on

the greenhouse environment you intend to

provide for the planting.

Tropical

Tropical trees require a

warmer winter environment.

This can be a substantial

expense in cooler climates, but

in a greenhouse designed for

year round production of warm

weather vegetable crops this is

a great fit.

Cold Hardy

Cold Hardy trees can require a

minimum number of winter hours

below 45 degrees fahrenheit or a

shorter photoperiod depending on

species.

A greenhouse can be designed

around these winter temps and

still produce hardier winter salad

greens, kales, chards and such or

trees can be placed in a garage

or other cool but not frozen area.

Grow Bed Style

Flood and Drain utilizing Dual Root Zone

So you can control wet / dry times as well as

proper nutrient levels

Hardware

55 Gallon barrel

Mediaguard

Bulkhead & screen for fill

Bulkhead & riser for fill height standpipe

Pump & Timer

Pruning

Growing in a greenhouse can be

limiting.

Utilizing dwarf varieties, planter

size, and pruning techniques you

can control fruiting plants growth,

footprint, and shading.

This may be a great time to practice

Espaliering!

Dual Root Zone Care

Flood and drain water level in gravel/clay medium only to

within a couple of inches of upper medium, you may play

with this dependent on the species you are growing.

Based on growth rate and seasonal demand you may add

nutrients to the upper medium such as Phosphorus and

Potassium. These can be required at much higher levels

during fruiting and growth periods than a typical aquaponic

system can supply. Zinc and other nutrients can also be

supplied via foliar treatments as needed.